Sharrow Engineering in Detroit, which developed groundbreaking propeller technology with more than 70 patents worldwide, today announced an undisclosed investment from Dolby Family Ventures, a technology venture firm dedicated to funding innovation.
The financial commitment advances Sharrow Engineering’s efforts to rapidly deliver a more efficient propeller technology to boat motors and, ultimately, other propeller-driven systems.
“Sharrow Marine ushers in a new era of environmentally conscious boating with a design platform that results in higher performance and efficiency with lower fuel consumption,” says said David Dolby, CEO of Dolby Family Ventures.
“The Sharrow propeller offers safety, stability, improved planing, and displacement performance while reducing vibration, cavitation, and noise. The entire marine industry will benefit from these developments.”
Sharrow Engineering launched its first subsidiary company, Sharrow Marine, in 2020 and won that year’s Miami International Boat Show Innovation Award. Since then, Sharrow Engineering states it has made significant investments in manufacturing facilities just outside Detroit to meet the rapidly expanding worldwide demand for the Sharrow Propeller and has plans to more than triple manufacturing output by early 2023.
“We couldn’t ask for a more ideal partner than Dolby Family Ventures,” says Greg Sharrow, president, and CEO of Sharrow Engineering and Sharrow Marine. “The Dolby name is recognized worldwide as the visionary leader in sound enhancement and noise reduction for audio recordings, starting with music.
“And our propeller technology is based on a silent drone blade that I developed while working as an executive producer and director in the video and music industry to capture enhanced drone shots where noise is a critical factor. Together, we will accelerate bringing the Sharrow Propeller technology to a much larger customer base through the marine industry and other propeller driven market segments.”
The company states the Sharrow Propeller has undergone extensive third-party testing, and its attributes include:
- More command of the vessel when docking
- Planes at 500-1,000 lower RPM
- Significant speed increase at mid-range RPMs
- As much as 30 percent more efficient between 2500-4000 RPM
- Provides up to 30 percent greater range
- Noticeably less vibration
- Up to 50 percent more reverse thrust
- Quieter at planing speeds
- Superior handling in tight turns at high speeds
For more information about Sharrow, visit www.sharrowengineering.com.
Dolby Family Ventures is an early-stage venture firm in San Francisco focused on building technology companies. The fund honors the legacy of Ray Dolby (1933-2013), who invented Dolby NR, a noise reduction system, helped develop the video tape recorder while at Ampex, and was founder of Dolby Laboratories.
For more information about Dolby Family Ventures, visit www.dolbyventures.com.
